The invention relates to a system for monitoring vascular access in a patient undergoing extracorporeal blood treatment.
Specifically, though not exclusively, the invention can be usefully applied in the field of extracorporeal treatment for kidney failure.
Setting up an extracorporeal blood treatment, such as for example hemodialysis therapy, requires blood circulation in an extracorporeal circuit connected to the cardiovascular circuit of the patient through a vascular access.
The blood, taken from the patient and sent through an extracorporeal circuit, is subjected to a treatment, generally passing through a treatment unit (for example a dialyzer filter) and thereafter returned to the patient. The vascular access is where the blood is removed from the cardio-vascular system of the patient and returned to the system.
One of the vascular accesses most commonly used in hemodialysis therapy is the Cimino-Brescia artero-venous fistula access. Other vascular access types are known, however. For reasons of simplicity the present description will make reference to the artero-venous fistula as an example of vascular access, without excluding other types of vascular access from the claimed field of protection.
In an extracorporeal treatment the blood is usually taken from the vascular access by an arterial needle fluidly connected to the extracorporeal circuit. After having passed through the treatment unit, the blood is sent back to the vascular access through a venous needle. Generally blood circulation in the extracorporeal circuit is performed by a positive displacement pump, generally peristaltic.
One of the problems of extracorporeal blood treatment is monitoring the efficiency of the vascular access.
A parameter indicative of this efficiency is the blood flow rate which the vascular access can supply. This flow rate is usually greater than the blood flow rate through the extracorporeal circuit. For example, in normal conditions the blood flow rate at the vascular access is about 800÷1200 ml/minute, while the blood flow rate in the extracorporeal circuit varies between 100 and 700 ml/minute.
The flow rate at the vascular access can diminish due to a vascular pathology, such as, for example, a stenosis, i.e. a narrowing of the blood passage section, or for example due to a drop in cardiac output. The presence and location of a stenosis at the vascular access should be determined as soon as possible in order to prevent the stenosis degenerating into a thrombosis (occlusion of the blood vessels).
A reduced-efficiency vascular access can lead to the undesirable phenomenon of recirculation of blood during treatment. Recirculation consists in the presence during treatment of blood flow proceeding in an opposite to the desired direction, i.e. from the return zone of the treated blood (venous needle) to the supply zone of the blood to be treated (arterial needle). Flow recirculation therefore consists in return (in the extracorporeal circuit) of blood which has already been subjected to treatment, with a consequent diminution in treatment efficiency.
Various systems have been proposed for monitoring vascular access and, more generally, the cardiovascular system of a patient subjected to extracorporeal blood treatment.
EP 1 044 695 A2 teaches a method for determining the blood flow rate in a vascular access during hemodialysis treatment. The method varies the blood flow rate of the extracorporeal circuit and measures the arterial and venous pressures in the extracorporeal circuit during the above-cited flow rate variations. The operations are carried out in two different conditions: first with the vascular access open, in which a part of the blood flow passes through the vascular access between the withdrawal needle and the return needle, and then when the vascular access is closed, in which the vascular access flow between withdrawal needle and return needle is zero. According to the method of EP 1 044 695 A2, vascular access blood flow rate, with the vascular access open, is judged to be equal to the blood pump flow rate at which the difference of arterial pressure (or venous pressure) in the two different situations is zero.
This method has the drawback that it is necessary to intervene mechanically on the fistula to interrupt blood flow.
WO 00/18451 teaches a method for determining the flow in a fistula of a patient using an extracorporeal blood flow circuit, such as for example a hemodialysis circuit, in which the blood flows from a withdrawal point in the fistula to a return point in the fistula. The method varies the blood flow rate in the extracorporeal circuit and takes a reading of a signal which can be correlated with the fistula flow rate downstream of the withdrawal point. The blood flow rate upstream of the withdrawal point is evaluated at equal the blood flow rate obtaining in the extracorporeal circuit when the fistula blood flow rate downstream, read with the above-described signal, is zero. WO 00/18451 includes an embodiment in which the signal which can be correlated to the fistula blood flow downstream of the withdrawal point is generated by an ultrasonic sensor which operates directly on the patient's vascular access.
The use of a sensor to directly measure the blood flow rate in the fistula tract comprised between the withdrawal needle and the return needle leads to a certain constructional complication, as well as some discomfort for the patient.
EP 1 020 199 A2 teaches a method for detecting the presence of a stenosis in a vascular access during extracorporeal blood treatment. The method includes the use of at least one pressure sensor predisposed in the extracorporeal circuit along the arterial line upstream of the blood pump. A stenosis can be calculated from the entity of the pressure pulse measured by the pressure sensor.
A pressure sensor can be placed on the arterial line too downstream of the blood pump and upstream of a dialyzer, and a further pressure sensor can be placed on the venous line downstream of the dialyzer. The method also includes a reading of the pressure pulse frequency and use of that frequency as a signal entity correction factor. The pressure pulse frequency signal can be corrected by means of a function depending on the blood pump flow rate.
The data deductible from the method described in EP 1 020 199 A2 is however limited: in particular, the method provides only a general indication of the hemodynamic state of the fistula, signalling the presence of a stenosis, but it cannot gather more detailed data, such as for example the vascular access blood flow rate or the location of any stenoses found.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,830,365 teaches a method for determining some hemodynamic parameters, among which the blood flow rate in a fistula during an extracorporeal blood treatment. The method involves the alteration of at least one chemical-physical characteristic of the blood in the venous line of the extracorporeal circuit, and recording the change which occurs in the arterial line following this alteration. The alteration can be a change in the concentration of an indicator, or a change in the temperature or pressure. In a specific embodiment use is made of a hemodialysis machine provided with a dialyzer where a dialysis solution containing an indicator flows and the concentration change of the indicator in the venous and arterial lines of the extracorporeal circuit connected to the dialyzer is registered. In the venous line the concentration of the indicator increases by effect of back-filtration through the dialyzer. In the arterial line the concentration of the indicator increases by effect of recirculation in the fistula. The change of concentration in the arterial and venous lines is read by ultrasonic sensors. Alteration (in this case the change in concentration) is performed in two stages: first when the blood flows in the normal direction through the extracorporeal circuit, then when the blood flows in the opposite direction. The method includes the use of a device for inverting the blood flow direction in the extracorporeal circuit. According to the method taught in U.S. Pat. No. 5,830,365 the change in concentration measured in the first stage enables calculation of recirculation at normal flow rate, while the change in concentration measured in the second stage enables calculation of recirculation when the flow is inverted. The two calculated values thus enable a calculation of various hemodynamic parameters among which the blood flow rate in the fistula.
However the alteration of the chemical-physical properties of the blood and the inversion of the flow during the course of extracorporeal treatment lead to various drawbacks: a constructional complication, a delay in carrying out the treatment, an invasive intervention on the blood, quite removed from the course of normal treatment.
WO 02/04044 teaches a method for identifying problems in arterial flow during an extracorporeal blood treatment in which the blood is transferred, by means of a positive displacement pump, from the vascular access of a patient to a blood treatment device through an arterial line and then sent by the treatment device to the vascular access through a venous line of the extracorporeal circuit. The method consists in measuring the amplitude of the periodic variations in pressure in the venous line induced by the rotation of the blood pump, by comparing the variations with a threshold value and generating a control signal if the threshold value is exceeded. WO 02/04044: further describes another method according to which, during a dialysis treatment, the amplitude of the periodical variations of, the pressure of the dialysis fluid (and not the venous line) is measured. The result is compared with a threshold value and if the threshold value is exceeded a control signal is generated.
The methods described in WO 02/04044 are not however able to provide data relating to the blood flow rate at the vascular access.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,221,040 discloses a system for monitoring a vascular access during a dialysis treatment in which the pressures in both the arterial and venous branches of the extracorporeal blood system are monitored by pressure sensors. A computer unit generates first and second characteristic values for the integrity of the vascular access from measured arterial and venous pressures. An analyser unit analyses the integrity of the vascular access by comparing the first and second characteristic values to first and second ranges of predetermined values. Calculating a sum of the venous and arterial pressure generates the first characteristic value, and calculating a difference between the venous and the arterial pressure generates the second characteristic value.
The object of U.S. Pat. No. 6,221,040 is to provide a monitoring system that allows detection of the venous cannula slipping out of the vascular access as well as detection of a blood leak in the venous branch of the extracorporeal circuit. It is not directed to determination of fistula flow.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,866,015 and EP 0 773 035 disclose a method for determining hemodynamic parameters during an extracorporeal hemotherapy, including the steps of measuring the blood temperature in the arterial branch of the extracorporeal circuit, varying the blood flow in the extracorporeal circuit, storing the values of the extracorporeal blood flow and the measured values of the blood temperature, and determining a value of the blood flow from the stored sequence of value pairs of blood temperature and of extracorporeal blood flow, at which value, after it is exceeded, the amount of the change in the blood temperature within a specific blood flow interval is greater than a predetermined limiting value. The fistula flow is inferred from the determined blood flow value.
The method is based on the fact that the measuring curve existing in discrete measured values is able to be represented by two subfunctions, the first subfunction indicating the blood temperature as a function of the extracorporeal blood flow for blood flow values smaller than the fistula flow or equal to the fistula flow, and the second subfunction indicating the blood temperature as a function of the blood flow for blood flow values greater than or equal to the fistula flow. The intersection of the two subfunctions indicates the point where the extracorporeal blood flow equals fistula flow. Thus, from the “break point” of the characteristic function curve, i.e., from the discontinuity in the rise of the curve, the point is able to be defined where fistula recirculation begins, i.e., where blood flow equals fistula flow.
In addition to measuring temperature, the concentration of a blood constituent (hematocrit) can also be measured, as can the density, speed of sonic propagation, optical density, and conductivity or viscosity.
The blood characteristic to be measured must have a different value in the venous branch of the extracorporeal circuit than it does in the blood flowing to fistula. It is assumed that the blood characteristic, preferably the temperature, is kept constant in the venous branch of the extracorporeal circuit while the measured values are recorded. If this characteristic is not constant, a regulating device to keep the characteristic in the venous branch constant must be provided. In the case of a temperature measurement, for example, this can be realized as a temperature controller.
Another drawback of this method is that the delivery rate of blood pump, which predetermines the extracorporeal blood flow, is increased starting from a lower value to an upper limiting value which must be greater than the fistula flow to be expected. Fistula flows can only be determined within the adjustable blood flow range. Therefore the fistula flow is not determinable if it is equal to or greater than the upper limiting value of the adjustable blood flow range.
The prior art comprises the scientific publication entitled: “On-line dynamic measurement of fistula pressure during hemodialysis for detection of access stenosis and bad needle placement”, Abstract from the 24th EDTNA-ERCA Conference, Prague, 5–8 Jul. 1997, page 23, authors Polaschegg, Techert and Wizemann.
According to this publication it is possible to calculate the pressure of a vascular access by measuring the pressure in an extracorporeal blood circuit connected to the vascular access, with the aim of detecting any stenoses in the access itself.
In a scientific publication entitled “Dynamic pressure measurement for detection of blood access stenosis”, published in the EDTNA-ERCA Journal, 1998, XXIV, 4, on pages 39–44, authors Polaschegg, Techert and Wizemann, more detail is given on monitoring problems in a patient's vascular access. The method is based on the determination of the venous and arterial pressures (upstream of the blood pump) in an extracorporeal blood circuit connected to the vascular access to be monitored. The method comprises a preliminary stage in which, through in vitro tests in which the extracorporeal circuit is not connected to a real vascular access, fluid resistances in the arterial and venous lines of the extracorporeal circuit are calculated. During a second stage the extracorporeal circuit is connected to the real vascular access of the patient in order to initiate an extracorporeal treatment. During the extracorporeal treatment the venous and arterial pressures are calculated in the extracorporeal circuit. As the venous and arterial pressures in the extracorporeal circuit are known, as are the fluid resistances in the arterial and venous lines of the extracorporeal circuit, the pressures in the vascular access can be calculated. The dynamic measurement at different flow rates and the comparison with static measures enables stenoses at the vascular access to be identified.
The scientific publication entitled “Pressure drops in cannulas for hemodialysis”, author H. D. Polaschegg, published in The International Journal of Artificial Organs, Vol. 24, No. 9, 2001, pp. 614–623, relates to a method for determining a fall in pressure in an arterial or venous line in hemodialysis, with which the vascular access pressures can be determined starting from the pressures measured in the extracorporeal circuit of the hemodialysis machine.
The scientific publication entitled “Extracorporeal pressure monitoring and the detection of vascular access stenosis”, authors Kleinekofort, Kraemer, Rode and Wizemann, published in The International Journal of Artificial Organs, Vol. 25, No. 1, 2002, pp. 45–50, presents a method for identifying the presence of stenoses in a vascular access, even where the stenosis is located between the withdrawal needle and the return needle. The method comprises measuring the static pressures in the arterial and venous lines of an extracorporeal circuit and in calculating the pressures at the vascular access at the withdrawal point and the return point. These pressures, which correspond to the pressures which would be measured by two pressure sensors directly connected to the withdrawal and return needles, are used in order to identify the presence of a stenosis. A knowledge of the pressures both at the point of withdrawal and at the point of return of the vascular access provides more accurate indications and enables a first approximate localization of the stenosis, especially enabling to detect if the stenosis is in venous tract or is located between the needles.
The method described here is not however able to determine the blood flow rate in the vascular access.
The publication entitled “Utility of intra-access pressure monitoring in detecting and correcting venous outlet stenoses prior to thrombosis”, in Kidney International, Vol. 47 (1995), pages 1364–1373, authors Besarab, Sullivan, Ross, Moritz, teaches a method for deriving the pressure internally of the vascular access (intra-access pressure) from the pressure measured in the hemodialysis machine, as a function of the type of needle used, the blood flow rate of the hemodialysis machine, and the hematocrit of the blood. Other methods for determining the pressure at the vascular access are cited or described in the following publications:                “Detection of access strictures and outlet stenoses in vascular accesses. Which test is best?”, in ASAIO Journal, 1997, Vol. 43: pages M543–M547, authors Besarab, Lubkowski, Frinak, Ramanathan, Escobar;        “Simplified measurement of intra-access pressure”, in Journal of the American Society of Nephrology, 1998, Vol. 9, pages 284–289, authors Besarab, Frinak, Sherman, Goldman, Dumpler, Devita, Kapoian, Al-Saghir, Lubkowski;        “Effect of systemic hemodynamics on flow within vascular accesses used for hemodialysis”, in ASAIO Journal 2001, Vol. 47, pages 501–506, authors Besarab, Lubkowski, Vu, Aslam, Frinak;        “Dynamic venous access pressure ratio test for hemodialysis access monitoring”, in American Journal of Kidney Disease, Vol. 40, No 4 (October), pages 760–768, 2002, authors Frinak, Zasuwa, Dunfee, Besarab, Yee.        
An abstract entitled “A novel model-based method for monitoring the hemodialysis vascular access”, published in the Journal of the American Society of Nephrology, 2001, Vol. 12, N. A1513, pages 294A–295A, authors Lodi, Monari, Fava, Paolini, Grandi, Galato, Cavalcanti, cites a mathematical model based on the hemodynamic description of the vascular access which enables the arterial and venous pressures at the vascular access to be calculated and also the flow in vascular access starting from extracorporeal arterial and venous pressures. The model, which includes three parameters (resistance to flow of the anastomosis, resistance between arterial and venous access, the resistance which expresses the efficiency of venous circulation drainage), was used to analyse the data gathered during a normal hemodialysis therapy operation. The abstract states that the extracorporeal venous and arterial pressures were measured after having set four different flow rates on the blood pump and that the above-cited parameters included in the mathematical model were calculated using the mathematical model.